Today's adventure was a drive to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, a 7 hour trip including lots of stops inside the park. After entering the park and driving about 12 miles we took the Cape Royal Road which does not allow for tour buses or any vehicles over 22 ft in length. Our first stop was Point Imperial, the highest point on the North Rim at 8803 ft. It overlooks the eastern Grand Canyon as well as Marble Canyon and the Painted Desert. From there we went to Vista Encantada for more Canyon views, and then on to Walhalla Overlook for more Canyon vies. While at this stop we also visited the site of an ancestral Pueblo home tracing back 1000 years or more. Our last stop on this road was Cape Royal where we walked a trail that provided us with spectacular views of Angels Window through which we could see the Colorado River. This area also provided us with both east and west views of the Canyon. Then it was time to drive 23 miles back down the road we had come to get to the North Rim Lodge and viewing areas. The we grabbed a bite to eat before walking along the Canyon walls to Angel Point. It was a great finish to our visit to the Grand Canyon National Park. Jim did a great job of getting us back to camp about 95 minutes later. We were greeted by a very happy dog! He had to stay home because most parks do not allow dogs on the trails out here...safety reasons.
